The Witchcraft Trials Of Essex

Essex is infamous with its involvement in the witchcraft trials that took place around 400 years ago. We look at case histories and the accusations that caused mass hysteria, showing the amazing stories behind the considerable loss of life.

The Witchcraft Trials of Essex

Essex is well known for the beautiful landmark Waltham Abbey and was originally called Eastseaxe, home of the East Saxons. Essex is also famous for its involvement in the witchcraft trials that took place around 400 years ago. More witches have been hung in this county than any other in all of England. Mostly convicted on precarious evidence and confessions attained in unreliable circumstances, up to ninety witches were hung between the late 16th and early 17th century in Essex alone. When Matthew Hopkins, known as the Witchfinder General, visited the county of Essex a staggering 19 witches were hung in one single day just on his accusation alone.

In 1566 the very first of the major witchcraft trials in England took place in Chelmsford, Essex. The accused were Agnes Waterhouse, her daughter Joan Waterhouse and another woman who was known to them named Elizabeth Francis. The women all came from the village of Hatfield Peverall and all were accused of colluding together in witchcraft.

On the word of a 12-year-old girl the three women were accused of sharing a cat named Satan that had been sent to spoil butter. Satan was their familiar, a creature that lives with a witch helping her to cast her evil spells and carrying out mischievous deeds on his or her behalf. According to further witnesses one Elizabeth Francis had made advances towards a man in the village. He rejected her amorous advances and she was very angry with him. It was said that Elizabeth had sent Satan to kill him and then later the creature had managed to find her a husband and a child that she was happy with.

It seems that Elizabeth was so pleased with the results she then gave the familiar to Agnes and Joan Waterhouse. It was while with the Waterhouse ladies that Satan was accused of spoiling butter and cheese. At the time of the trial the cat was described as having an apes head, horns and appeared to be wearing a silver whistle around its neck. It was said the cat also bewitched a man to death and drowned some of the neighbour's cows. At the trial Elizabeth Francis managed to survive a year by being given a gaol sentence of hard labour, although she was eventually hung in 1567 for her crime. At the trial the 12-year-old girl had also said that Agnes Waterhouse gave a drop of her blood to the cat Satan as a reward for acting out her evil deeds. According to the prosecution, the red spots upon Agnes's face confirmed the cat sucked her blood.

Another accusation that may be the real reason for accusing Agnes was that she could only say her prayers in Latin. This was proved in the court and in protestant England was not acceptable. 63-year-old Agnes, probably under torture, confessed to being guilty of all charges. Agnes was hung straight after the trial, but her daughter Joan was surprisingly not charged with any crimes of witchcraft and was set free.

In 1579, the same year that Elizabeth Francis met her fate, another woman called Ellen Smith was also hanged. She had apparently sent a strange black creature described as like to a black dog', to bring about the death of a child. It seemed that a lot of witches were hung after being accused of similar crimes and were probably a result of grief and the hysteria of the times. All manner of creatures were apparently involved in carrying out the evil wishes of the witches. An accused witch named Joan Prentice was said to have owned a ferret that she called Bid and this creature had also been sent out to kill a child that had been annoying her greatly. Not surprisingly, Joan Prentice ended her life at the end of the hangman's noose.

In 1589 ten people were arrested on the accusation of sorcery. Three were found guilty including Joan Cunny and her daughter who, it was said, had two frogs named Jack and Jill. These familiars' were accused of knocking over firewood and bewitching cattle. The 80-year-old and her daughter were hanged for these crimes only two hours after the end of their trial.

Most trials were held on the flimsiest of evidence and most confessions would have been gained through torture. Today none of these trials would ever make it to court and would certainly not be taken seriously. The fear of witchcraft did, however, last for many years and one of the latest incidents recorded in Essex involving witchcraft was as late as 1863.

This incident involved an 80-year-old man in the village of Sible Hedington, Essex, who was accused by a Mrs Smith of making her ill by casting a spell on her. He was known as Old Dummy' as he was deaf and mute and he spent a lot of his time drinking in a public house called The Swan. When a mob stormed into the public house and dragged him down to a nearby stream he must have been terrified. They threw him in to see if he would sink or swim. It is well known that the best way of telling if a person was a witch or not was by ducking them in water. If they survived their ducking they were found guilty, as it was believed that water would reject a witch. They were then hung in front of their accusers and a hostile crowd. Unfortunately, this was no consolation for the poor souls who drowned and were found innocent posthumously. Old Dummy struggled in the water while he was being bombarded with stones thrown by the villagers. One group felt sorry for him and dragged him out but he died several days later in the local workhouse. Even though Old Dummy could not be saved there was some justice for him. Mrs Smith and another man were both accused of murder as they had used the evidence of a 10-year-old girl to cause the poor man's death. They both received six months hard labour for their crime.

Many women were accused of witchcraft just for the way they looked, that they had an animal for company in their old age and what the accusers said were signs of being a witch. These signs were usually the signs of old age. Women with such marks on their body as spots or warts were accused of having the devil's mark. A three-inch long spike was thrust into the mark as it was said the witch would not feel any pain there. Often retractable spikes were used but people believed the accusers and were easily convinced. The hysteria surrounding witchcraft reached its peak when Matthew Hopkins, the Witchfinder General, appeared with the Devil's list of all english witches' that he claimed held the names of all those who practised witchcraft and worshipped the devil. It seemed that people could easily be fooled into believing the worst about their neighbours and some even used it as a chance to get rid of the ones that they disliked. This was not limited to Essex and certainly not England, but wherever it happened it is a superstition that cost hundreds and possibly thousands of innocent lives.